“Graceful Gruner”by Nick Passmore
…when you move up the quality scale to such intriguing beauties as the Grüner Veltliner Alte Reben, Weingut Brundlmayer 2000.
Willi Brundlmayer is one of the country's most renowned winemakers, and here he has crafted a gem. The secret lies in the Alte Reuben on the label--"old vines" in German--and it is the limited yield from these old vines that give the wine its intensity.
It appeared light and delicate at first; the longer it sat in the glass, the more it revealed Grüner Veltliner's hallmark spiciness. It's aromatic, almost exotic, while the dense, rich, nearly sweet flavor is perfectly balanced by a fine acidity, which keeps the powerful fruit from becoming overpowering.
This is very definitely a food-friendly wine.
It has enough weight to stand up to what one would normally consider red-wine dishes, and its notes of spice and touch of sweetness make it the perfect accompaniment for Asian cuisine--perhaps not chicken vindaloo, but it would be ideal with the sort of trendy Asian fusion and Nuevo Latino cooking that overpowers most wine.
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